Building Benchmarks for Pediatric Care: Patients Hospitalized for Asthma, Bronchiolitis and Pneumonia

Asthma, pneumonia, and bronchiolitis are the leading causes of admission for pediatric patients. However, national benchmarks of care for these conditions do not exist. In a 2014 published study, researchers demonstrated that treatment for these patient populations varied greatly across organizations. The study, using PHIS data from 42 children’s hospitals, also calculated achievable benchmarks of care for these common conditions.

Leveraging this foundational work, the association recently re-evaluated hospital performance in comparison to the 2014 study baseline and the benchmarks of care, finding several hospitals achieved significant improvements. This new report, “Building Benchmarks for Pediatric Care: Patients Hospitalized for Asthma, Bronchiolitis and Pneumonia Report," features success stories from the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital and the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago. The latter hospital's improvement resulted in a 33 percent reduction in the cost per patient from June 2012 - March 2015. The report also highlights the key success factors that allowed both organizations to improve care.